Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
In manipulating its selection and representation of the scientific literature on the solar
influenceonglobalmeansurfacetemperature,theIPCChasattemptedtobolsterthestance
of a tiny minority of scientists and then to pretend, with 95 per cent confidence, that this
represents a 'scientific consensus'. Such a consensus, even if it did exist, would be of no
interest to science.
The central lesson to be learned from this episode in scientific history is that to create
anorganisationfinanciallyandideologicallydependentuponcomingtoasingle,aprioristic
viewpoint, regardless of the objective truth, is to create a monster that ignores the truth.
Regrettably,thecumulativeeffectoftheIPCC'sconductoverthelast25yearshasinflicted
severe and long-term damage on the reputation of science and of scientists everywhere.
The sun is the ultimate factor in causing change of terrestrial climate. At a small but
measurable level, the sun varies, just as most stars do. Centuries of observation and more
recent research strongly suggest that our climate is modulated in important ways by the
sun's variability. The basic physics of this connection is still poorly understood and stands
at the frontier of research. But the body of needed raw data is now available, unlike even
twenty years ago. Studying the response and interrelation of other planets to the sun's
variability will be extremely helpful in understanding our climate.
